Sep 17th

Bimbia Historic Slave Trade Site

Payton Kaar
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During our stay in Cameroon, we visited Bimbia, was the largest slave trade site in all central Africa. It was quite harrowing and eerie to be there. It felt as if the site was alive with the spirits of the hundreds tortured and murdered there. Among the atrocities we witnessed was a feeding trough where people’s hands and feet were chained together, and they were made to eat with their mouths, hunched over. We saw large pillars where people were chained on top of each other and left to struggle until one remained. The survivor was then sent through the “door of no return” onto a boat to a small island. The island had no food or water and was a holding site for slaves waiting to be taken to the Americas or Europe, sometimes in abundance of two weeks.


We also learned that many tribes people came to Bimbia thinking there was a prosperous life with jobs there because many of their friends and family were taken there and never returned. Once they crossed the bridge into Bimbia, they were kidnapped, chained, and enslaved. It was a very painful place to witness firsthand, but certainly a worthwhile experience for anyone visiting central Africa.

The Gates of Bimbia
Bimbia Art
Am I not a man and a brother?
Informational Signs at Bimbia
Administrative building for accepting and processing slaves
Remains of a slave holding site

The site holds reenactments annually that involve rebuilding some areas of the site.
Pillars where people were left chained up
The door of no return
Feeding Trough
View of the island where captives were held for pickup
Freed slave statue in the village of Bimbia

TotalAdventure does not currently . have adventures in Cameroon, but we invite Cameroon companies to apply. For another exotic area in Africa, check out our trip to Ethiopia. https://totaladventure.travel/trips/203383

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